Andy Burnham Was 'Likely' to Have Secured Gorton and Denton Byelection, Says Labour Deputy Leader

The party's second-in-command has suggested that Andy Burnham would have won the Gorton and Denton byelection, while she called for her party to make more use of the influential Greater Manchester mayor.

A Surprise Victory for the Green Party

Overturning a sizable 13,000-vote Labour majority from the previous general election, a local Green councillor, a local plumber, became the Green Party's fifth MP on Friday. This occurred in an area that had consistently returned Labour MPs for nearly a century.

The Reform Party's Matt Goodwin placed second, narrowly beating the official Labour contender, Angeliki Stogia.

Renewed Scrutiny Over Candidate Decision

The unexpected outcome has sparked fresh debate of the party's choice to block Andy Burnham from standing in the seat last month.

In an interview with the BBC, Labour's deputy leader, Lucy Powell, remarked, "Andy Burnham likely could have held the seat. I think certainly the Greens wouldn't have targeted the seat in the same way that they did."

Powell was the sole member of Labour's top decision-making body to support allowing Burnham to stand, with the majority, including leader Keir Starmer, opposing the move.

Collective Decision

However, she told the BBC she accepted "collective responsibility" for the outcome, citing concern about necessitating a mayoral byelection in Greater Manchester.

Powell also emphasized that her party needed to learn from the sources of Burnham's widespread popularity in the region. She said people "view him as someone who is fighting for them, someone who is implementing those Labour values and Labour policies."

"We have to draw on that, leverage Andy Burnham, but also learn from it and consider how we could replicate that success across the country," she continued.

Future Speculation

Andy Burnham is understood not to have ruled out another attempt at returning to parliament. A source close to him said, "Given the current political climate, who knows what might happen. It would be foolish to say he would never."

To date, Burnham himself has yet to comment on the byelection result. Meanwhile, Keir Starmer has pledged to continue despite labelling the poll result "disappointing."

Party Response

Angela Rayner, a prominent voice on Labour's left, described the byelection result "a stark warning" for the party.

Meanwhile, the Home Secretary is set to warn against the party moving to the left in response to the defeat. This comes as she introduces legislation for stricter border controls next week.

An insider was quoted as saying, "The party should not misinterpret the message from its recent byelection loss. The idea that we are alienating support over immigration is simply incorrect."